Method and system for content recording and indexing

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a method for a control point of initiating actions on a device in a communication network comprising at least two control points both adapted to control said device. Further, the present invention relates to a method for a device of initiating actions on said device in a communication network comprising at least two control points both adapted to control said device. Further, the present invention relates to a control point of initiating actions on a device in a communication network comprising at least two control point both adapted to control said device. Further, the present invention relates to a device in a communication network comprising at least two control points both adapted to control said device based on action requests received from a control point along with control point identification.

PRIOR APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.14/790,796, filed Jul. 2, 2015, which is a continuation of U.S.application Ser. No. 14/169,296, filed Jan. 31, 2014 (now U.S. Pat. No.9,106,968), which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.11/967,668, filed Dec. 31, 2007 (now U.S. Pat. No. 8,689,257), all ofwhich are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

This application relates to a method and system for content processing,and more specifically to methods and systems for content recording andindexing.

BACKGROUND

A user of a television or other display device seeking content may belimited to receiving content available in real-time or on demand from acontent source.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments are illustrated by way of example and not limitation in thefigures of the accompanying drawings, in which like references indicatesimilar elements and in which:

FIGS. 1A and 1B are block diagrams of an example content systemaccording to an example embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an example content selection guidegeneration subsystem that may be deployed in the content system of FIGS.1A and 1B according to an example embodiment;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an example content providing subsystem thatmay be deployed in the content system of FIGS. 1A and 1B according to anexample embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an example hierarchical navigationsubsystem that may be deployed in the content system of FIGS. 1A and 1Baccording to an example embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of an example visual representation subsystemthat may be deployed in the content system of FIGS. 1A and 1B accordingto an example embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a method for program guide generationin accordance with an example embodiment;

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of an example display in accordance with anexample embodiment;

FIGS. 8 and 9 are flowcharts illustrating a method for providing acontent selection guide in accordance with an example embodiment;

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a method for utilizing a contentselection guide in accordance with an example embodiment;

FIGS. 11 and 12 are flowcharts illustrating a method for utilizing acontent selection guide in accordance with an example embodiment;

FIG. 13 is a is a block diagram of an example display in accordance withan example embodiment;

FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating a method for utilizing a contentselection guide in accordance with an example embodiment;

FIG. 15 is a flowchart illustrating a method for navigating a contentselection guide in accordance with an example embodiment;

FIG. 16 is a block diagram of an example display in accordance with anexample embodiment;

FIG. 17 is a flowchart illustrating a method for content selection guidepresentation in accordance with an example embodiment;

FIG. 18 is a block diagram of an IPTV system in which the content systemof FIGS. 1A and 1B may be deployed in accordance with an exampleembodiment; and

FIG. 19 illustrates a diagrammatic representation of a machine in theexample form of a computer system within which a set of instructions forcausing the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologiesdiscussed herein may be executed.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Example methods and systems for content recording and indexing aredescribed. In the following description, for purposes of explanation,numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thoroughunderstanding of example embodiments. It will be evident, however, toone skilled in the art that the present invention may be practicedwithout these specific details.

In an example embodiment, content may be accessed from a content source.The content may be processed to generate an index of the content.Programming data for future content may be accessed. A content selectionguide may be generated in accordance with the index and the programmingdata. The content selection guide may include a listing of the indexedcontent and the future content.

In an example embodiment, a listing portion of a content selection guidemay be presented. The listing portion may be associated with a contentportion of content. A hierarchical navigation selection may be receivedfor the listing portion. A different listing portion of the contentselection guide may be presented in accordance with the hierarchicalnavigation selection. The different listing portion may be associatedwith the content portion and including different information regardingthe content portion than the listing portion.

In an example embodiment, a content portion of content may be accessed.A topic associated with the content portion may be identified. A visualcontent representation associated with the content portion of thecontent may be accessed in accordance with the identifying of the topic.A content selection guide including the visual content representation ofthe content portion may be provided for presentation.

FIG. 1A illustrates an example content system 100. A content source 102may provide content (e.g., in the form of a video signal) over aprovider network 104 to a receiver device 108 and/or a display device106.1 for presentation. The receiver device 108 and/or the displaydevice 106.1 may include one or more processing subsystems 110 to, byway of example, receive the content from the content source 102, recordand index the content, receive programming data regarding futurecontent, generate a content selection guide (e.g., a programming guide)including the indexed content and the future content, and provide acontent selection guide for presentation to allow access to the indexedcontent and future content. An example embodiment of the processingsubsystems 110 is described in greater detail below.

The video signal may be a sequence of images and one or more associatedaudio tracks. The video signal may be a high quality video stream (e.g.,MPEG-4) that is transcoded for distribution to the display device 106.1and/or the receiver device 108. The video signal may include standarddefinition (SD) or high definition (HD) video signals in NTSC (NationalTelevision System Committee), PAL (Phase Alternation Line), SECAM(Systeme Electronique Couleur Avec Memoire), sequence of bitmaps orother signal formats that transport a sequence of images. The form ofthe video signal may be modified to enable implementations of variousformats and resolutions. The video signal may provide a variety ofcontent types including, without limitation, television programs, music,movies, and commercials. The video signal may include Teletext. Forexample, program insertion (DPI) and/or or analog cues tones may beincluded in the video signal.

Other types of content may also be provided by the content source 102.For example, descriptors, thumbnails, and metadata may also be providedby the content source 102.

The provider network 104 may be a television distribution network,Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) network, an InternetProtocol (IP) network, a Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) network,and/or a WiFi network. Other networks may also be used.

The content source 102 may be a television station (e.g., including asingle broadcast channel or a plurality of broadcast channels), abroadcast network, a server, stored content, a digital versatile disc(DVD), or the like. The content source 102 may be a local content sourceand/or a remote content source.

A single stream or multiple streams of content may be received from oneor more content sources 102 and simultaneously processed by the displaydevice 106.1 and/or the receiver device 108.

The display device 106.1, 106.2, may be a television monitor, a mobiletelephone, a portable gaming device, a personal digital assistant (PDA),a computer monitor, and the like. Other types of display devices mayalso be used.

Examples of the receiver device 108 include a set-top box (STB), areceiver card, a mobile telephone, a PDA, and a computing system;however other devices may also be used.

A remote control device 112 may communicate with the display device106.1, 106.2, and/or the receiver device 108 to control a contentportion presented on a visual display of the display device 106.1,106.2. The remote control device 112 may include one or more processingsubsystems 110 instead of or in addition to the processing subsystems110 of the display device 106.1 and/or the receiver device 108. In anexample embodiment, the remote control device 112 may include a visualdisplay on which a content selection guide may be presented to a user.

Programming data regarding future content may be provided from thecontent source 102 and/or an information source 116. The programmingdata 118 may include a programming content identification, a programmingcontent highlight, a programming content image, and/or programmingcontent information. The programming data 118 may be stored in adatabase 114 or otherwise be accessible.

One or more indexes 120 of the content may be stored in the displaydevice 106.1, the receiver device 108, the remote control device 112,and/or the database 114. For example, an index of the display device106.1, the receiver device 108, the remote control device 112 may be foran individual customer, while the index in the database 118 may beshared by all customers. The indexes 120 may be created by theprocessing subsystem 110 as described in greater detail below.

FIG. 1B illustrates an example content system 150 in which the displaydevice 106.2 may receive content from a local content source 154 and/ora remote content source 156. A content selection guide presented on thedisplay device 106.2 may be generated at and received from a networkapparatus 152.

The network apparatus 152 may access content from the local contentsource 154 and the remote content source 156. The content source mayalso receive and provide the one or more indexes 120 to a local database156 and/or a remote database 158. The local database 156 and the remotedatabase 158 may also store the programming data 120.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example content selection guide generationsubsystem 200 that may be deployed in the receiver device 108, thedisplay device 106.1, and/or the remote control device 112 of thecontent system 100 as the processing subsystem 110 (see FIG. 1) orotherwise deployed in another system.

The content selection guide generation subsystem 200 may include acontent access module 202, an processing module 204, a programming dataaccess module 206, a pictorial view generation module 208, a descriptionaccess module 210, a metadata generation module 212, a content selectionguide generation module 214, an interest determination module 216, acontent selection guide provider module 218, and/or an index providermodule 220. Other modules may also be used.

The content access module 202 accesses content from the content source102. The processing module 204 processes the content to generate anindex of the content. The programming data access module 206 accessesthe programming data 118 for future content.

The pictorial view generation module 208 generates a pictorial view of acontent portion of the content. The description access module 210accesses a description of a content portion. The description may beaccessed from closed captioning of the content portion, by processingthe content portion with a speech-to-text engine, or otherwise accessed.

The metadata generation module 212 generates metadata for the contentaccessed from the content source 102. The content selection guidegeneration module 214 generates a content selection guide in accordancewith the index and the programming data 118. The content selection guidemay include a pictorial view and/or a description of a content portion.The generated metadata by the metadata generation module 212 may be usedduring the generating of the content selection guide.

In an example embodiment, the content selection guide may include alisting of the indexed content and the future content. The listing mayinclude, by way of example, program text identifying a program of theindexed content, future program text identifying a future program of thefuture content, segment text identifying a segment of the program,future segment text identifying a future segment of the future content,program pictorial representation identifying the program, future programpictorial representation identifying the future program, segmentpictorial representation identifying the segment, and/or future segmentpictorial representation identifying the future segment.

The interest determination module 216 determines one or more interestsof a user associated with the content selection guide. The contentselection guide provider module 218 module provides the contentselection guide for presentation and/or to the remote control device112. The content selection guide may be provided for presentation to auser in accordance with the determining of the one or more interests ormay be otherwise provided. The index provider module 220 provides theindex to another device (e.g., the remote control device 112) associatedwith the same user or a different user on the provider network 104.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example content providing subsystem 300 that maybe deployed in the receiver device 108, the display device 106.1, and/orthe remote control device 112 of the content system 100 as theprocessing subsystem 110 (see FIG. 1) or otherwise deployed in anothersystem.

The content providing subsystem 300 may include a content selectionguide provider module 302, a navigation selection receiver module 304, alisting portion presentation module 306, a content viewing selectionreceiver module 308, a content portion provider module 310, a metadatastorage module 312, a metadata analysis module 314, a content rankingmodule 316, a content listing selection receiver module 318, adescription presentation module 320, a search request receiver module322, a search module 324, a search results provider module 326, a topicdescription provider module 328, a differentiation module 330, and/or atopic match selector module 332. Other modules may also be used.

The content selection guide provider module 302 provides the contentselection guide for presentation, to the remote control device 112, tothe network apparatus, or to another device on the provider network 104.The navigation selection receiver module 304 receives a navigationselection. The navigation selection may include a scrolling selection ora content selection.

The listing portion presentation module 306 presents a listing portionof the listing and/or a different listing portion of the listing of thecontent selection guide in accordance with the navigation selectionand/or the content selection.

The content viewing selection receiver module 308 receives a contentviewing selection. The content portion provider module 310 provides acontent portion associated with the content viewing selection and/or atopic match selection for presentation.

The metadata storage module 312 stores metadata associated with thecontent portion to create a stored metadata portion. The metadataanalysis module 314 analyzes stored metadata including the storedmetadata portion to determine a content viewing profile.

The content ranking module 316 assigns a content ranking to the contentportion in accordance with the content viewing profile. The contentlisting selection receiver module 318 receives a content listingselection. The description presentation module 320 presents adescription associated with the listing portion of the content selectionguide.

The search request receiver module 322 receives a search request and/ora time range for the topic. The search module 324 searches the contentselection guide in accordance with the search request and/or the timerange.

The results provider module 326 provides the search results forpresentation. The search results may include a program of the indexedcontent, a future program of the future content, a segment of theprogram, a future segment of the future content, a component of theindexed content, or a future component of the future content. Othersearch results may also be used. For example, the search results mayinclude a number of programs (e.g., episodes of THE TONIGHT SHOW withJay Leno), a number of future programs (e.g., local nightly news shows),a number of segments (e.g., musical guests on episodes of THE TONIGHTSHOW with Jay Leno), and/or a number of future segments (e.g., trailersof upcoming television shows).

The topic description provider module 328 provides a topic descriptionfor associated content with the search results s provided forpresentation. The differentiation module 330 differentiates a portion ofthe topic description provided for presentation that includes the searchrequest. The topic match selector module 332 receives a topic matchselection of a topic match.

FIG. 4 illustrates example hierarchical navigation subsystem 400 thatmay be deployed in the receiver device 108, the display device 106.1,and/or the remote control device 112 of the content system 100 as theprocessing subsystem 110 (see FIG. 1) or otherwise deployed in anothersystem.

The hierarchical navigation subsystem 400 may include a listing portionpresentation module 402, a navigational selection receiver module 404,and/or a different listing portion presentation module 406. Othermodules may also be used.

The listing portion presentation module 402 presents a listing portionof a content selection guide. The listing portion may be associated witha content portion of content. The listing portion may include programtext identifying the content portion and/or program pictorialrepresentation identifying the content program.

The navigational selection receiver module 404 receives a hierarchicalnavigation selection for the listing portion. The different listingportion presentation module 406 presents a different listing portion ofthe content selection guide in accordance with the hierarchicalnavigation selection. The different listing portion may be associatedwith the content portion and may include different information regardingthe content portion than the listing portion.

The different listing portion may include, by way of example, a synopsisof the content portion, an actor name of an actor associated with thecontent portion, an actress name of an actress associated with thecontent portion, a director name of a director associated with thecontent portion, segment text identifying a segment of the contentportion, segment pictorial representation identifying the segment, aguidance rating of the content portion, a teaser, a uniform resourcelocation (URL), a telephone number, a script element, a video callinitiation, a click-to-purchase video, environmental data, and/orspeech-to-text from the content portion (e.g., generated from thelisting). The segment may include a scene of the content portion or aframe of the content portion.

FIG. 5 illustrates example visual representation subsystem 500 that maybe deployed in the receiver device 108, the display device 106.1, and/orthe remote control device 112 of the content system 100 as theprocessing subsystem 110 (see FIG. 1) or otherwise deployed in anothersystem.

The visual representation subsystem 500 may include a content portionaccess module 502, a topic identification module 504, useridentification module 506, a representation access module 508, apictorial view generation module 510, and/or a content selection guidepresentation module 512. Other modules may also be used.

The content portion access module 502 accesses a content portion ofcontent. The content portion may be received over the provider network104 from the content source 102 and/or accessed from storage. The topicidentification module 504 identifies a topic associated with the contentportion.

The user identification module 506 identifies a user associated with theremote control device 112. The representation access module 508 accessesa visual content representation associated with the content portion ofthe content in accordance with the identifying of the topic and/or andthe user associated with the remote control device 112. The visualcontent representation of the content portion of the content may begenerated in an example embodiment.

The visual content representation may include a textual descriptionand/or a pictorial view. For example, the visual content representationmay include a pictorial view associated with a past content portion.

The pictorial view generation module 510 generates a pictorial view ofthe content portion of the content. The content selection guidepresentation module 512 presents a content selection guide including thevisual content representation of the content portion and/or thepictorial view of the content portion in place of the visual contentrepresentation of the content.

FIG. 6 illustrates a method 600 for program guide generation accordingto an example embodiment. The method 600 may be performed by the displaydevice 106.1, the receiver device 108, and/or the remote control device112 of the content system 100 (see FIG. 1) or otherwise performed.

Content is accessed at block 602. The content may be accessed from thecontent source 102, the local content source 154 and/or the remotecontent sources 156. The content may include past content, currentcontent, and/or future content. For example, the past content mayinclude content that has already been broadcast, the current content mayinclude content that is currently being broadcast, and the futurecontent is content that is scheduled to be broadcast in the future(e.g., a teaser or bonus material for a program to be broadcast in thefuture). The content may be accessed in real-time or at a delay (e.g.,from storage or a digital video recorder).

Metadata may be accessed for the content accessed from the contentsource 102 at block 604. The metadata may be generated (e.g., on thefly), accessed from the content, accessed from a source of the metadata,or otherwise obtained. The metadata may be generated in accordance withthe instantiation target of content selection guide. The instantiationtargets may include the display device 106.1, the receiver device 108,the remote control 112, and/or the network apparatus 152.

At block 606, the content is processed to generate an index of thecontent. The content may be indexed in a time-oriented manner or indexedin a different manner.

At decision block 608, a determination may be made whether to providethe index. If a determination is made to provide the index, the indexmay be provided to another device (e.g., the remote control device 112or a receiver device 108 in a different room of a house of the user) onthe provider network 104 at block 610. If a determination is made atdecision block 608 not to provide the index or upon the completion ofthe operations at block 610, the method 600 may proceed to block 612.

The programming data 118 is accessed for future content at block 612.The future content may include content or portions thereof that have notbeen accessed (e.g., in accordance with the operations at block 602).

A pictorial view of a content portion of the content may be generated atblock 614. The pictorial view may be generated on the fly or otherwisegenerated. The pictorial view generated may be based on the device towhich the content selection guide will be provided for presentation. Forexample, the pictorial view may be generated at a lower quality for amobile device and at a higher quality for a set-top box.

A description of a content portion may be accessed at block 616. Thedescription of the content portion may be accessed by accessing closedcaptions of the content portion, processing the content portion with aspeech-to-text engine, or otherwise accessed.

A content selection guide is generated in accordance with the index andthe programming data 118 at block 618. The content selection guide mayinclude a single user interface that utilizes the index, the programmingdata, and/or the metadata to enable playing and navigating content. Thepictorial view of the content portion and/or the description of thecontent may be included in the content selection guide.

The content selection guide may include a listing of both the indexedcontent and the future content. The listing may include, by way ofexample, program text identifying a program of the indexed content,future program text identifying a future program of the future content,segment text identifying a segment of the program, future segment textidentifying a future segment of the future content, program pictorialrepresentation identifying the program, future program pictorialrepresentation identifying the future program, segment pictorialrepresentation identifying the segment, and/or future segment pictorialrepresentation identifying the future segment. The listing may be asingle, uniform listing containing text and/or pictorial representationsof multiple different types from multiple different sources.

In an example embodiment, the generated metadata may also be used togenerate the content selection guide during the operations at block 618.

At decision block 620, a determination may be made whether to providethe content selection guide. If a determination is made to provide thecontent selection guide, the content selection guide may be provided tothe remote control device 112, provided for presentation (e.g., directlydisplayed or provided to a device for display), or otherwise provided atblock 622. For example, the content selection guide may be provided forpresentation in a time-oriented manner. If a determination is made notto provide the content selection guide at decision block 620 or uponcompletion of the operations at block 622, the method 600 may terminate.

In an example embodiment, the method 600 may be used to provide acontent selection guide with access to a single stream or multiplestreams of content. The content may be accessed in real-time or at adelay. For example, multiple streams of content may be continuouslyand/or simultaneously accessed during the operations at block 602 andmay be available for navigation and playback in the content selectionguide provided for presentation at block 622.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of an example display 700 of a listing portionof a content selection guide according to an example embodiment. Thedisplay 700 may be presented on the display device 106.1, 106.2, theremote control device 112, or may be otherwise presented. In an exampleembodiment, the display 700 may be presented to a user when the listingportion of the content selection guide is selected. For example, thedisplay 700 may be presented to a user during the operations at block622 (see FIG. 6).

A number of available date selections 702-708 may be associated withavailable content and available to a user. In addition, additional datesmay be also be available to a user by selecting the more selection 710.A user may search for available content through search field 712 and asearch selection 714.

A current content window 716 may display an image or video of contentcurrently selected for presentation. Additional content windows 718-724may include an image or video of available content available forselection. Display text 726-732 may be associated with the additionalcontent windows 718-724 to provide information regarding the contentportion associated with the additional content windows 718-724. Forexample, the information may include a time at which a program wasbroadcast, the name of the program, and the like.

Navigation controls 734, 736 may enable a user to be provided withdifferent content portions in the additional content windows 718-724.While the navigation controls 734, 736 are shown in the display 700 asarrows, other types of navigation controls may also be used.

FIG. 8 illustrates a method 800 for providing a content selection guideaccording to an example embodiment. The method 800 may be performed atblock 622 (see FIG. 6) or otherwise performed. In an example embodiment,the method 800 may be used to tailor a content selection guide for aparticular user.

One or more interests of a user associated with the content selectionguide are determined at block 802. The determination of the interestsmay be based on collected usage statistics of the user. The usagestatistics may be based on selections made by the user with the contentselection guide. The determination may change with the age of the userand/or may be refined over time based on additional usage statistics.

The content selection guide is provided for presentation in accordancewith the determining of the one or more interests at block 804.

In an example embodiment, the one or more interests of the user may bereevaluated and the content selection guide may again be provided forpresentation instead of the previously provided content selection guide.

FIG. 9 illustrates a method 900 for providing a content selection guideaccording to an example embodiment. The method 900 may be performed atblock 622 (see FIG. 6) or otherwise performed. In an example embodiment,the method 900 may be used to browse available content in the contentselection guide.

A listing portion of the listing of the content selection guide ispresented at block 902. The listing portion may include availablecontent for selection. An example embodiment of the listing portion isshown in display 700 (see FIG. 7).

A navigation selection for the content selection guide is received atblock 904. The navigation selection may be a request by a user to viewother content selection than those presented by the listing portion. Thenavigation selection may include a scrolling selection, a contentselection, or the like.

At block 906, a different listing portion of the listing is presented inaccordance with the navigation selection. The different listing portionmay include different content available for selection than the listingportion.

FIG. 10 illustrates a method 1000 for utilizing a content selectionguide according to an example embodiment. In an example embodiment, themethod 1000 may be used to navigate in the content selection guide. Themethod 1000 may be performed by the display device 106.1, the receiverdevice 108, and/or the remote control device 112 of the content system100 (see FIG. 1) or otherwise performed.

The content selection guide may be provided for presentation at block1002. The content selection guide may be presented on a visual displayof the display device 106.1, 106.2, the receiver device 108, and/or theremote control device 112. The content selection guide may also beotherwise displayed.

A content listing selection is received at block 1004. The contentlisting selection may be to provide a listing of content available froma particular content source 102 (e.g., a television channel).

A listing portion of the content selection guide associated with thecontent selection is presented at block 1006. The listing portion mayinclude indexed content and future content.

A description associated with the listing portion of the contentselection guide may be provided at block 1008. The description mayprovide information regarding a content portion identified in thelisting portion. For example, the information may include identificationof the content source 102, airtime of the content portion, length of thecontent portion, and the like.

A navigation selection may be received at block 1010. A differentlisting portion of the content selection guide associated with thenavigation selection may be presented at block 1012. The operationsperformed at block 1010 and block 1012 may enable the user to navigatethrough multiple different listing portions of the content selectionguide.

FIG. 11 illustrates a method 1100 for utilizing a content selectionguide according to an example embodiment. In an example embodiment, themethod 1100 may be used to view a content portion identified in thecontent selection guide. The method 1100 may be performed by the displaydevice 106.1, the receiver device 108, and/or the remote control device112 of the content system 100 (see FIG. 1) or otherwise performed.

The content selection guide may be provided for presentation at block1102. The content selection guide may be presented on a visual displayof the display device 106.1, 106.2, the receiver device 108, and/or theremote control device 112. The content selection guide may also beotherwise displayed.

In an example embodiment, the content selection guide may be presentedin accordance with a content viewing profile and/or a content ranking.The content viewing profile may include the viewing habits of aparticular user and/or multiple users of a particular device. Thecontent ranking may be an interest expressed implicitly or explicitly ina content portion, for example, by a particular user and/or multipleusers on a particular device.

A content viewing selection is received at block 1104. The contentviewing selection may be of a content portion available on a listingportion of the content selection guide. At block 1106, a content portionassociated with the content viewing selection for presentation isreceived.

Metadata associated with the content portion may be stored to create astored metadata portion at block 1108. At block 1110, the storedmetadata may be analyzed to determine the content viewing profile. Thestored metadata may include the stored metadata portion.

The content ranking may be assigned to the content portion in accordancewith the content viewing profile at block 1112.

FIG. 12 illustrates a method 1200 for utilizing a content selectionguide according to an example embodiment. In an example embodiment, themethod 1200 may be used to search using the content selection guide. Themethod 1200 may be performed by the display device 106.1, the receiverdevice 108, and/or the remote control device 112 of the content system100 (see FIG. 1) or otherwise performed.

The content selection guide may be provided for presentation at block1202. The content selection guide may be presented on a visual displayof the display device 106.1, 106.2, the receiver device 108, and/or theremote control device 112. The content selection guide may also beotherwise displayed.

A search request is received at block 1204. The search request mayinclude text (e.g., a search string) and/or an image. For example, thesearch may include a request for a topic, a title, a date, a time, orthe like.

At block 1206, the indexed content, the programming data and/or themetadata is searched in accordance with the search request. The searchmay also be based on the user for whom the search is being performed.The matches may be associated with a program of the indexed content, afuture program of the future content, a segment of the program, and/or afuture segment of the future content.

The search results are provided for presentation at block 1208. Thesearch results may be provided for presentation through the contentselection guide or otherwise provided.

At block 1210, a topic description may be provided for associatedcontent with the search results provided for presentation. A portion ofthe topic description provided for presentation that includes the searchrequest may be differentiated at block 1212. For example, the portionmay be highlighted, bolded, or otherwise differentiated.

A topic match selection of a topic match may be received at block 1214.The content portion associated with the topic match may then be providedfor presentation at block 1216.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram of an example display 1300 of a listingportion of a content selection guide according to an example embodiment.In an example embodiment, the listing portion presented in the display1300 may be in response to a search request. The display 1300 may bepresented on the display device 106.1, 106.2, the remote control device112, or may be otherwise presented.

A number of available date selections 1302-1308 may be associated withavailable content and available to a user. Recent content may also beavailable to a user by selecting a more recent selection 1310. A usermay make a new search query for content through search field 1312 and asearch selection 1314.

A current content window 1316 may display an image or video of contentcurrently selected for presentation. Additional content windows1318-1324 may include an image or video of other search results (e.g.,topic matches) available for selection. Display text 1326-1332 may beassociated with the additional content windows 1318-1324 to provideinformation regarding the search results associated with the additionalcontent windows 1318-1324. For example, the information may include atime at which a program is available, the name of the program, a line oftext from a content program, and the like.

Navigation controls 1334, 1336 may enable a user to be provided withfurther search results in the additional content windows 1318-1324.While the navigation controls 1334, 1336 are shown in the display 1300as arrows, other types of navigation controls may also be used.

FIG. 14 illustrates a method 1400 for utilizing a content selectionguide according to an example embodiment. The method 1400 may beperformed by the display device 106.1, the receiver device 108, and/orthe remote control device 112 of the content system 100 (see FIG. 1) orotherwise performed.

The content selection guide may be provided for presentation at block1402. The content selection guide may be presented on a visual displayof the display device 106.1, 106.2, the receiver device 108, and/or theremote control device 112. The content selection guide may also beotherwise displayed.

A search request and a time range for a topic is received at block 1404.The time range may designate the search for the topic to a designatedperiod of time.

The content selection guide is searched for one or more topic matches inaccordance with the search request and the time range at block 1406.

One or more topic matches are provided for presentation at block 1408.The topic matches may be provided for presentation through the contentselection guide or otherwise provided.

At block 1410, a topic description may be provided for associatedcontent with the one or more topic matches provided for presentation. Aportion of the topic description provided for presentation that includesthe search request may be differentiated at block 1412.

A topic match selection of a topic match may be received at block 1414.The content portion associated with the topic match may then be providedfor presentation at block 1416.

FIG. 15 illustrates a method 1500 for navigating a content selectionguide according to an example embodiment. The method 1500 may beperformed by the display device 106.1, the receiver device 108, and/orthe remote control device 112 of the content system 100 (see FIG. 1) orotherwise performed.

A listing portion of a content selection guide is presented at block1502. The listing portion may be associated with one or more contentportions of content. The listing portion may include, by way of example,program text identifying the content portion and/or program pictorialrepresentation identifying the content program.

A hierarchical navigation selection for the listing portion is receivedat block 1504. The hierarchical navigation selection may seek a greaterlevel of detail or lesser level of detail regarding a particular contentportion.

At block 1506, a different listing portion of the content selectionguide is presented in accordance with the hierarchical navigationselection. The different listing portion may be associated with thecontent portion. The different listing portion may include differentinformation regarding the content portion than the listing portion.

The different listing portion may include a synopsis of the contentportion, an actor name of an actor associated with the content portion,an actress name of an actress associated with the content portion, adirector name of a director associated with the content portion,component text identifying a component of the content portion, componentpictorial representation identifying the component, and/or a guidancerating of the content portion. Other different listing portions may alsobe used. The segment may include a scene of the content portion or aframe of the content portion.

The segment may consist of multiple components. The components arecontent aspects that may be from the content source 102, 154, 156. Forexample, a segment may include a first component (e.g., video) from afirst content source, a second component (e.g., audio) from a secondcontent source, and a third component (e.g., metadata) from a thirdcontent source.

FIG. 16 is a block diagram of an example display 1600 of a differentlisting portion according to an example embodiment. The display 1600 maybe presented on the display device 106.1, 106.2, the remote controldevice 112, or may be otherwise presented. In an example embodiment, thedisplay 1600 may be presented in response to a hierarchical navigationrequest.

A number of available content selections 1602-1608, 1634, 1636 may beassociated with available content that is available to a user. A usermay select a greater level of detail for a particular content selectionby selecting a zoom in selection 1602 or a lesser level of detail for aparticular content selection by selection a zoom out selection 1604. Theuser may use a previous page selection 1606, 1634 and/or a next pageselection to view different frames from the content selection at thesame level of detail earlier or later in time. The user may select a toplevel of a menu (e.g., a programming listing page) for the contentselection guide by selecting the upper menu selection 1610.

A content window 1612 may display an image or video of content currentlybeing provided for presentation. The additional content windows1614-1636 may include an image or video at the same level of detail thatare available for selection. The level of detail provided in theadditional content windows 1614-1636 may be reflected based on thekeyframes of the content that are provided for presentation. Forexample, if a 30 minute program contains one thousand keyframes, agreatest level of detail of the content may be to show individualkeyframes pages after pages, while the lowest level of detail may be toshow only nine keyframes sampled across the one thousand totalkeyframes.

FIG. 17 illustrates a method 1700 for content selection guidepresentation according to an example embodiment. The method 1700 may beperformed by the display device 106.1, the receiver device 108, and/orthe remote control device 112 of the content system 100 (see FIG. 1) orotherwise performed.

A content portion of content is accessed at block 1702. The contentportion may be a component, a segment, or a content signal. The contentportion may be received over the provider network 104 from the contentsource 102, accessed from storage, or otherwise accessed.

A topic associated with the content portion is identified at block 1704.A user associated with a remote control device may be identified atblock 1706.

At block 1708, a visual content representation associated with thecontent portion of the content is accessed in accordance with theidentification of the topic. The visual content representation mayinclude a pictorial view associated with a past content portion.

In an example embodiment, the visual content representation may beaccessed in accordance with the determining of the topic and the userassociated with the remote control device.

The visual content representation of the content portion may begenerated from the content portion, accessed from storage, or otherwiseaccessed. The visual content representation may include a textualdescription and/or a pictorial view.

A content selection guide including the visual content representation ofthe content portion is provided for presentation at block 1710.

A pictorial view of the content portion of the content may be generatedat block 1712. At block 1714, the content selection guide may bepresented including the pictorial view of the content portion in placeof the visual content representation of the content.

FIG. 18 illustrates an example embodiment of an Internet ProtocolTelevision (IPTV) system 1800 in which the content system 100 may bedeployed. However, the content system 100 may be deployed in other typesof IPTV and non-IPTV video systems.

The system 1800 as illustrated may include a client facing tier 1802, anapplication tier 1804, an acquisition tier 1806, and an operations andmanagement tier 1808. Some tiers 1802, 1804, 1806, 1808 may be coupledto a private network 1810; to a public network 1812, such as theInternet; or to both the private network 1810 and the public network1812. For example, the client-facing tier 1802 may be coupled to theprivate network 1810. Further, the application tier 1804 may be coupledto the private network 1810 and to the public network 1812. Theacquisition tier 1806 may also be coupled to the private network 1810and to the public network 1812. Additionally, the operations andmanagement tier 1808 may be coupled to the public network 1812.

As illustrated in FIG. 18, some of the various tiers 1802, 1804, 1806,1808 may communicate with each other via the private network 1810 andthe public network 1812. For instance, the client-facing tier 1802 maycommunicate with the application tier 1804 and the acquisition tier 1806via the private network 1810. The application tier 1804 may alsocommunicate with the acquisition tier 1806 via the private network 1810.Further, the application tier 1804 may communicate with the acquisitiontier 1806 and the operations and management tier 1808 via the publicnetwork 1812. Moreover, the acquisition tier 1806 may communicate withthe operations and management tier 1808 via the public network 1812.

As illustrated in FIG. 18, the client-facing tier 1802 may communicatewith user equipment via a private access network 1866 (e.g., theprovider network 104 of FIG. 1), such as an Internet Protocol Television(IPTV) access network. In an illustrative embodiment, modems, such as afirst modem 1814 and a second modem 1822 may be coupled to the privateaccess network 1866. The client-facing tier 1802 may communicate with afirst representative set-top box device 1816 via the first modem 1814and with a second representative set-top box device 1824 via the secondmodem 1822. The client-facing tier 1802 may communicate with a largenumber of set-top boxes, such as the representative set-top boxes 1816,1824, (e.g., the receiver device 108 of FIG. 1) over a wide geographicarea, such as a regional area, a metropolitan area, a viewing area, adesignated market area or any other suitable geographic area, marketarea, or subscriber or customer group that may be supported bynetworking the client-facing tier 1802 to numerous set-top box devices.In an illustrative embodiment, the client-facing tier, or any portionthereof, may be included at a video head-end office.

In a particular embodiment, the client-facing tier 1802 may be coupledto the modems 1814, 1822 via fiber optic cables. Alternatively, themodems 1814 and 1822 may be digital subscriber line (DSL) modems thatare coupled to one or more network nodes via twisted pairs, and theclient-facing tier 1802 may be coupled to the network nodes viafiber-optic cables. Each set-top box device 1816, 1824 may process datareceived via the private access network 1866, via an IPTV softwareplatform, such as Microsoft® TV IPTV Edition. In another embodiment,representative set-top boxes 1816, 1824 may receive data from privateaccess network 1866 through RF and other cable and/or satellite basednetworks.

Additionally, the first set-top box device 1816 may be coupled to afirst external display device, such as a first television monitor 1818,and the second set-top box device 1824 may be coupled to a secondexternal display device, such as a second television monitor 1826.Moreover, the first set-top box device 1816 may communicate with a firstremote control 1820, and the second set-top box device may communicatewith a second remote control 1828.

In an example, non-limiting embodiment, one or more of set-top boxdevices 1816, 1824 may receive video content, which may include videoand audio portions, from the client-facing tier 1802 via the privateaccess network 1866. The set-top boxes 1816, 1824 may transmit the videocontent to an external display device, such as the television monitors1818, 1826. Further, some of the set-top box devices 1816, 1824 mayinclude a STB processor, such as STB processor 1870, and a STB memorydevice, such as STB memory 1872, which is accessible to the STBprocessor 1870. In one embodiment, a computer program, such as the STBcomputer program 1874, may be embedded within the STB memory device1872. Some set-top box devices 1816, 1824 may also include a videocontent storage module, such as a digital video recorder (DVR) 1876. Ina particular embodiment, the set-top box devices 1816, 1824 maycommunicate commands received from the remote control devices 1820, 1828to the client-facing tier 1802 via the private access network 1866.

In an illustrative embodiment, the client-facing tier 1802 may include aclient-facing tier (CFT) switch 1830 that manages communication betweenthe client-facing tier 1802 and the private access network 1866 andbetween the client-facing tier 1802 and the private network 1810. Asshown, the CFT switch 1830 is coupled to one or more image and dataservers 1832 that store still images associated with programs of variousIPTV channels. The image and data servers 1832 may also store datarelated to various channels, e.g., types of data related to the channelsand to programs or video content displayed via the channels. In anillustrative embodiment, the image and data servers 1832 may be acluster of servers, some of which may store still images, channel andprogram-related data, or any combination thereof. The CFT switch 1830may also be coupled to a terminal server 1834 that provides terminaldevices with a connection point to the private network 1810. In aparticular embodiment, the CFT switch 1830 may also be coupled to one ormore video-on-demand (VOD) servers 1836 that store or provide VODcontent imported by the IPTV system 1800. In an illustrative,non-limiting embodiment, the VOD content servers 1880 may include one ormore unicast servers.

The client-facing tier 1802 may also include one or more video contentservers 1880 that transmit video content requested by viewers via theirset-top boxes 1816, 1824. In an illustrative, non-limiting embodiment,the video content servers 1880 may include one or more multicastservers.

As illustrated in FIG. 18, the application tier 1804 may communicatewith both the private network 1810 and the public network 1812. Theapplication tier 1804 may include a first application tier (APP) switch1838 and a second APP switch 1840. In a particular embodiment, the firstAPP switch 1838 may be coupled to the second APP switch 1840. The firstAPP switch 1838 may be coupled to an application server 1842 and to anOSS/BSS gateway 1844. In a particular embodiment, the application server1842 may provide applications to the set-top box devices 1816, 1824 viathe private access network 1866, which enable the set-top box devices1816, 1824 to provide functions, such as display, messaging, processingof IPTV data and VOD material, etc. In a particular embodiment, theOSS/BSS gateway 1844 includes operation systems and support (OSS) data,as well as billing systems and support (BSS) data. In one embodiment,the OSS/BSS gateway may provide or restrict access to an OSS/BSS server1864 that stores operations and billing systems data.

Further, the second APP switch 1840 may be coupled to a domaincontroller 1846 that provides web access, for example, to users via thepublic network 1812. For example, the domain controller 1846 may provideremote web access to IPTV account information via the public network1812, which users may access using their personal computers 1868. Thesecond APP switch 1840 may be coupled to a subscriber and system store1848 that includes account information, such as account information thatis associated with users who access the system 1800 via the privatenetwork 1810 or the public network 1812. In a particular embodiment, theapplication tier 1804 may also include a client gateway 1850 thatcommunicates data directly with the client-facing tier 1802. In thisembodiment, the client gateway 1850 may be coupled directly to the CFTswitch 1830. The client gateway 1850 may provide user access to theprivate network 1810 and the tiers coupled thereto.

In a particular embodiment, the set-top box devices 1816, 1824 mayaccess the IPTV system 1800 via the private access network 1866, usinginformation received from the client gateway 1850. In this embodiment,the private access network 1866 may provide security for the privatenetwork 1810. User devices may access the client gateway 1850 via theprivate access network 1866, and the client gateway 1850 may allow suchdevices to access the private network 1810 once the devices areauthenticated or verified. Similarly, the client gateway 1850 mayprevent unauthorized devices, such as hacker computers or stolen set-topbox devices from accessing the private network 1810, by denying accessto these devices beyond the private access network 1866.

For example, when the first representative set-top box device 1816accesses the system 1800 via the private access network 1866, the clientgateway 1850 may verify subscriber information by communicating with thesubscriber and system store 1848 via the private network 1810, the firstAPP switch 1838, and the second APP switch 1840. Further, the clientgateway 1850 may verify billing information and status by communicatingwith the OSS/BSS gateway 1844 via the private network 1810 and the firstAPP switch 1838. In one embodiment, the OSS/BSS gateway 1844 maytransmit a query across the first APP switch 1838, to the second APPswitch 1840, and the second APP switch 1840 may communicate the queryacross the public network 1812 to the OSS/BSS server 1864. After theclient gateway 1850 confirms subscriber and/or billing information, theclient gateway 1850 may allow the set-top box device 1816 access to IPTVcontent and VOD content. If the client gateway 1850 is unable to verifysubscriber information for the set-top box device 1816, e.g., because itis connected to an unauthorized twisted pair, the client gateway 1850may block transmissions to and from the set-top box device 1816 beyondthe private access network 1866.

As indicated in FIG. 18, the acquisition tier 1806 includes anacquisition tier (AQT) switch 1852 that communicates with the privatenetwork 1810. The AQT switch 1852 may also communicate with theoperations and management tier 1808 via the public network 1812. In aparticular embodiment, the AQT switch 1852 may be coupled to a liveacquisition server 1854 that receives television or movie content, forexample, from content sources 1856 through an encoder 1855. In aparticular embodiment during operation of the IPTV system, the liveacquisition server 1854 may acquire television or movie content. Thelive acquisition server 1854 may transmit the television or moviecontent to the AQT switch 1852 and the AQT switch 1852 may transmit thetelevision or movie content to the CFT switch 1830 via the privatenetwork 1810.

Further, the television or movie content may be transmitted to the videocontent servers 1880, where it may be encoded, formatted, stored, orotherwise manipulated and prepared for communication to the set-top boxdevices 1816, 1824. The CFT switch 1830 may communicate the televisionor movie content to the modems 1814, 1822 via the private access network1866. The set-top box devices 1816, 1824 may receive the television ormovie content via the modems 1814, 1822, and may transmit the televisionor movie content to the television monitors 1818, 1826. In anillustrative embodiment, video or audio portions of the television ormovie content may be streamed to the set-top box devices 1816, 1824.

Further, the AQT switch may be coupled to a video-on-demand importerserver 1858 that stores television or movie content received at theacquisition tier 1806 and communicates the stored content to the VODserver 1836 at the client-facing tier 1802 via the private network 1810.Additionally, at the acquisition tier 1806, the video-on-demand (VOD)importer server 1858 may receive content from one or more VOD sourcesoutside the IPTV system 1800, such as movie studios and programmers ofnon-live content. The VOD importer server 1858 may transmit the VODcontent to the AQT switch 1852, and the AQT switch 1852, in turn, maycommunicate the material to the CFT switch 1830 via the private network1810. The VOD content may be stored at one or more servers, such as theVOD server 1836.

When user issue requests for VOD content via the set-top box devices1816, 1824, the requests may be transmitted over the private accessnetwork 1866 to the VOD server 1836, via the CFT switch 1830. Uponreceiving such requests, the VOD server 1836 may retrieve the requestedVOD content and transmit the content to the set-top box devices 1816,1824 across the private access network 1866, via the CFT switch 1830.The set-top box devices 1816, 1824 may transmit the VOD content to thetelevision monitors 1818, 1826. In an illustrative embodiment, video oraudio portions of VOD content may be streamed to the set-top box devices1816, 1824.

FIG. 18 further illustrates that the operations and management tier 1808may include an operations and management tier (OMT) switch 1860 thatconducts communication between the operations and management tier 1808and the public network 1812. In the embodiment illustrated by FIG. 18,the OMT switch 1860 is coupled to a TV2 server 1862. Additionally, theOMT switch 1860 may be coupled to an OSS/BSS server 1864 and to a simplenetwork management protocol (SNMP) monitor 1878 that monitors networkdevices within or coupled to the IPTV system 1800. In a particularembodiment, the OMT switch 1860 may communicate with the AQT switch 1852via the public network 1812.

In an illustrative embodiment, the live acquisition server 1854 maytransmit the television or movie content to the AQT switch 1852, and theAQT switch 1852, in turn, may transmit the television or movie contentto the OMT switch 1860 via the public network 1812. In this embodiment,the OMT switch 1860 may transmit the television or movie content to theTV2 server 1862 for display to users accessing the user interface at theTV2 server 1862. For example, a user may access the TV2 server 1862using a personal computer (PC) 1868 coupled to the public network 1812.

FIG. 19 shows a diagrammatic representation of a machine in the exampleform of a computer system 1900 within which a set of instructions may beexecuted causing the machine to perform any one or more of the methods,processes, operations, or methodologies discussed herein. Theinformation source 116 and/or the content source 102 may be deployed onthe computer system 1900. The display device 106.1, 106.2, the receiverdevice 108, the remote control device 112, and/or the network apparatus152 may include the functionality of the computer system 1900.

In an example embodiment, the machine operates as a standalone device ormay be connected (e.g., networked) to other machines. In a networkeddeployment, the machine may operate in the capacity of a server or aclient machine in server-client network environment, or as a peermachine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment. Themachine may be a server computer, a client computer, a personal computer(PC), a tablet PC, a set-top box (STB), a Personal Digital Assistant(PDA), a cellular telephone, a web appliance, a network router, switchor bridge, or any machine capable of executing a set of instructions(sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be taken by thatmachine. Further, while only a single machine is illustrated, the term“machine” shall also be taken to include any collection of machines thatindividually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of instructionsto perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein.

The example computer system 1900 includes a processor 1902 (e.g., acentral processing unit (CPU) a graphics processing unit (GPU) or both),a main memory 1904 and a static memory 1906, which communicate with eachother via a bus 1908. The computer system 1900 may further include avideo display unit 1910 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) or acathode ray tube (CRT)). The computer system 1900 also includes analphanumeric input device 1912 (e.g., a keyboard), a cursor controldevice 1914 (e.g., a mouse), a drive unit 1916, a signal generationdevice 1918 (e.g., a speaker) and a network interface device 1920.

The drive unit 1916 includes a machine-readable medium 1922 on which isstored one or more sets of instructions (e.g., software 1924) embodyingany one or more of the methodologies or functions described herein. Thesoftware 1924 may also reside, completely or at least partially, withinthe main memory 1904 and/or within the processor 1902 during executionthereof by the computer system 1900, the main memory 1904 and theprocessor 1902 also constituting machine-readable media.

The software 1924 may further be transmitted or received over a network1926 via the network interface device 1920.

While the machine-readable medium 1922 is shown in an example embodimentto be a single medium, the term “machine-readable medium” should betaken to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralizedor distributed database, and/or associated caches and servers) thatstore the one or more sets of instructions. The term “machine-readablemedium” shall also be taken to include any medium that is capable ofstoring, encoding or carrying a set of instructions for execution by themachine and that cause the machine to perform any one or more of themethodologies shown in the various embodiments of the present invention.The term “machine-readable medium” shall accordingly be taken toinclude, but not be limited to, solid-state memories, optical andmagnetic media, and carrier wave signals.

Certain systems, apparatus, applications or processes are describedherein as including a number of modules or mechanisms. A module or amechanism may be a unit of distinct functionality that can provideinformation to, and receive information from, other modules.Accordingly, the described modules may be regarded as beingcommunicatively coupled. Modules may also initiate communication withinput or output devices, and can operate on a resource (e.g., acollection of information). The modules be implemented as hardwarecircuitry, optical components, single or multi-processor circuits,memory circuits, software program modules and objects, firmware, andcombinations thereof, as appropriate for particular implementations ofvarious embodiments.

Thus, methods and systems for content recording and indexing have beendescribed. Although the present invention has been described withreference to specific example embodiments, it will be evident thatvarious modifications and changes may be made to these embodimentswithout departing from the broader spirit and scope of the invention.Accordingly, the specification and drawings are to be regarded in anillustrative rather than a restrictive sense.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A device, comprising: a processing systemincluding a processor; and a memory storing executable instructionsthat, when executed by the processing system, perform operations,comprising: obtaining future content metadata associated with futurecontent, the future content metadata having been generated in accordancewith an instantiation target of a content selection guide, theinstantiation target comprising a target display coupled to the device;accessing programming data associated with the future content;generating the content selection guide from the programming dataassociated with the future content; receiving a pictorial view of thefuture content; presenting the content selection guide and the pictorialview of the future content at the target display, wherein the contentselection guide and the pictorial view are utilized for a userinterface, along with the metadata, to enable playing of the futurecontent; receiving a search request including a search string;facilitating a search of the programming data according to the searchstring; providing a search result according to the search and includinga topic description at the target display, wherein the topic descriptionis visually differentiated from the search string at the target display;receiving a viewing selection from the topic description andcorresponding to a portion of the future content that is listed in thecontent selection guide, included in the pictorial view, or acombination thereof; transmitting the viewing selection to a mediaprocessing device; and receiving a ranking of content from the mediaprocessing device, wherein the ranking of content is generated accordingto the viewing selection.
 2. The device of claim 1, wherein the devicecomprises a remote controller for the media processing device, andwherein the processor comprises a plurality of processors operating in adistributed processing environment.
 3. The device of claim 2, whereinthe pictorial view has a quality based on a capability of the remotecontroller.
 4. The device of claim 1, wherein the topic description isvisually differentiated from the search string at the target display viahighlighting, bolding, or a combination thereof.
 5. The device of claim1, wherein the operations further comprise transmitting the searchrequest to the media processing device responsive to receiving thesearch request.
 6. The device of claim 1, wherein the operations furthercomprise transmitting an index to the media processing device.
 7. Thedevice of claim 1, wherein the ranking of content corresponds to aninterest in a content portion expressed by a user.
 8. The device ofclaim 1, wherein the operations further comprise transmitting thecontent selection guide to the media processing device.
 9. The device ofclaim 1, wherein: the obtaining the future content metadata inaccordance with the instantiation target comprises generating the futurecontent metadata in accordance with the instantiation target; and theoperations further comprise generating the user interface and playingthe future content.
 10. A method, comprising: obtaining, by a processingsystem comprising a processor in a remote controller, future contentmetadata accessed from future content, the future content metadatahaving been generated in accordance with an instantiation target of acontent selection guide, the instantiation target comprising a targetdisplay coupled to the processor; accessing, by the processing system,programming data associated with the future content; generating, by theprocessing system, a content selection guide from the programming dataassociated with the future content; receiving, by the processing system,a pictorial view of the future content; presenting, by the processingsystem, the content selection guide and the pictorial view of the futurecontent at the target display, wherein the content selection guide andthe pictorial view are utilized for a user interface, along with themetadata, to enable playing of the future content; transmitting, by theprocessing system, the content selection guide to a media processingdevice, wherein the media processing device is controlled by the remotecontroller; receiving, by the processing system, a search requestincluding a search string; facilitating, by the processing system, asearch of the programming data according to the search string;providing, by the processing system, a search result according to thesearch and including a topic description at the target display, whereinthe topic description is visually differentiated from the search stringat the target display; receiving, by the processing system, a viewingselection from the topic description and corresponding to a portion ofthe future content that is listed in the content selection guide,included in the pictorial view, or a combination thereof; receiving, bythe processing system, a ranking of content from the media processingdevice; and transmitting, by the processing system, the viewingselection to the media processing device.
 11. The method of claim 10,wherein the pictorial view has a quality based on a capability of theremote controller, and wherein the processor comprises a plurality ofprocessors operating in a distributed processing environment.
 12. Themethod of claim 10, wherein the ranking of content corresponds to aninterest in a content portion expressed by a user.
 13. The method ofclaim 10, wherein the ranking is assigned in accordance with a viewingprofile.
 14. The method of claim 10, wherein: the obtaining, by theprocessing system, the future content metadata in accordance with theinstantiation target comprises generating, by the processing system, thefuture content metadata in accordance with the instantiation target; andthe method further comprises generating, by the processing system, theuser interface and playing, by the processing system, the futurecontent.
 15. A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium comprisingexecutable instructions that, when executed by a processing systemincluding a processor, perform operations comprising: obtaining futurecontent metadata accessed from future content, the future contentmetadata having been generated in accordance with an instantiationtarget of a content selection guide, the instantiation target comprisinga target display coupled to the processor; generating an index of thefuture content; accessing programming data associated with the futurecontent; generating a content selection guide from the programming dataassociated with the future content and the index; receiving a pictorialview of the future content; presenting the content selection guide andthe pictorial view of the future content at the target display, whereinthe content selection guide and the pictorial view are utilized for auser interface, along with the metadata, to enable playing of the futurecontent; receiving a search request including a search string;facilitating a search of the programming data according to the searchstring; providing a search result according to the search and includinga topic description at the target display, wherein the topic descriptionis visually differentiated from the search string at the target display;receiving a viewing selection from the topic description andcorresponding to a portion of the future content that is listed in thecontent selection guide, included in the pictorial view, or acombination thereof; transmitting the viewing selection to a mediaprocessing device; and receiving a ranking of content from the mediaprocessing device, wherein the ranking of content is generated accordingto the viewing selection.
 16. The non-transitory machine-readablestorage medium of claim 15, wherein the processor comprises a remotecontroller for the media processing device, and wherein the processorcomprises a plurality of processors operating in a distributedprocessing environment.
 17. The non-transitory machine-readable storagemedium of claim 16, wherein the pictorial view has a quality based on acapability of the remote controller.
 18. The non-transitorymachine-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the topicdescription is visually differentiated from the search string at thetarget display via highlighting, bolding, or a combination thereof. 19.The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 15, whereinthe operations further comprise transmitting the search request to themedia processing device responsive to receiving the search request. 20.The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein:the obtaining the future content metadata in accordance with theinstantiation target comprises generating the future content metadata inaccordance with the instantiation target; and the operations furthercomprise generating the user interface and playing the future content.